U.S. Port Contractor Has Terrorist Ties

A foreign company set to build a massive tunnel project at a major U.S. seaport has close ties to the government of a country that has long appeared on the State Department’s list of nations that sponsor terrorism.

The French construction giant (Bouygues Travaux Publics) is the preferred contractor to build a $1 billion tunnel at the South Florida Port of Miami, the world’s top cruise ship terminal with nearly 4 million passengers annually and one of the country’s busiest cargo ports with about one million containers a year.

It turns out that the French company has very close ties with Cuba and has in fact teamed up with its communist government to build nearly a dozen high-end resorts. Cuban Dictator Fidel Castro has even praised the company during his marathon speeches to the masses.

The State Department has for years listed Cuba as a nation that sponsors terrorism, along with other U.S. enemies such as Iran and Syria. In fact, a recent State Department report on terrorism says that Cuba, Iran and Syria have not renounced terrorism or made efforts to act against foreign terrorist organizations.

It seems ironic that U.S. tax dollars – in this case state, county and city–will go to a company with such a cozy relationship to a notorious America basher and supporter of terrorism. Then, there is the very pressing national security issue.